RASCAL REPORT
An eye on baby boomers since 2022
“I look forward to growing old and wise and audacious.”
– Glenda Jackson
The mind is willing, so the body doesn’t have much choice
These men, many in their 80s, may have titanium hips and implantable defibrillators. But they plan to play hockey until they go to that big locker room in the sky.
By now, everyone knows what to expect: The skating is slow, the wisecracks whiz by fast and the laughter flows as freely as the beer.
“If you like paint drying, you will be riveted,” said Larry Meredith, 82, the captain of the Berkeley Bears, a team in the tournament’s 70-plus division.
Is the secret to age denying it?
For many years now, I have been hiding a dreaded secret that threatened to reduce my appeal in the job market and decrease my pay. And the secret is ... I am getting older.
On Monday (July 24th) I celebrated my birthday. For me, the shocker is I turned 66 years old, one year past the official retirement age in America.
The longer I live in denial of this, the better. I hope never to retire.
Working gives us identity, keeps us connected, and forces the brain and body to keep firing. And to keep caring about what is going on in the world.
Turning 65 means Social Security, Medicare, and senior discounts as reparations: "I'm old. Pity me." The rest of you get to be younger; I get a couple of bucks off a movie ticket. Although I may never use this discount: I am too vain.
Baby boomers still making hit albums
Musicians – especially those in the rock and jazz spheres – aren’t particularly known for their long lifespans. Accidents, drugs, violence, suicide, and disease have claimed far too many young talents, many of them before their 30th birthday. (In a grim coincidence, Kurt Cobain, Jill Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Amy Winehouse all died at 27.) A surprising number of performers born 50 or 60 years ago or more – baby boomers – who may have had their first hits when they were in their 20s, still turn out music that resonates with audiences of all ages. One thing the list demonstrates is that no one period or genre has a monopoly on vibrant revival. Here you’ll find representatives of country (Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson), heavy metal (Ozzy Osbourne, Iron Maiden), new wave/synth pop (Tears for Fears, Depeche Mode), singer-songwriter folk-rock (Van Morrison, Neil Young [who appears twice]), easy listening (Barry Manilow), blues-rock (Bonnie Raitt), jazz (Pat Metheny), and more.
How Japan’s lack of heirs has put 6.5 million jobs and $150 billion at stake
Kiyoshi Hashimoto’s machine factory on the outskirts of Tokyo should be the center of activity. But it’s so quiet that you can even hear him practicing on the recorder, one of his favorite pastimes. The 82-year-old businessman founded his company nearly 40 years ago, but even after reaching retirement age, he could neither find a successor nor a buyer for the business that continues to retain loyal customers.
The Japanese government has assured that this problem could affect a third of the country’s small businesses by 2025, given the decline and aging of the population.
New 2020 census data shows an aging America and wide racial gaps between generations
The new census data provides an authoritative picture of the nation’s continued aging. During the 2010-20 decade, the 65-and-older population (referred to here as the “senior” population) grew by nearly two-fifths (38.6%). This is over twice as much as during the 2000-10 decade and more than triple the rate of the 1990s (see Figure 1). It was the highest decade-long rate of senior growth that the nation has experienced since the 1880s, and the largest intercensal numeric gain (15.5 million) in its history. Underlying this gain was the aging of the large baby boomer generation, the first half of whom turned 65 during this decade.